The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-03-31
expnlsion. There are sim two thousand Sioux

expulsion, there are still two thousand Sioux
In the Br fish northwest The Chippeways
claim that they have been driving the Sioux
before them for many generations toward
the south and west; and there is no clear
tradition of any time when the two nations
were at peace. And here / must note one
curious fact. Almost every Indian tradition
represents the tribe as coming from the north,
driving other tribes before it; and many Of
the important bands far in the southwest
trace back to q region north of the Saskatch-
avian. The Miamis, who We're the aborigi-
mes of Indiana to us, were first found
by the French in northern Iowa; and both
history and tradition relate the southwark
migration of the great Shoshonee race. SO
those humanitarians who NOUN that "the
white man took the Indians country from
him." may find consolation il the fact that
the Indian had just done the same to his pre-
decessors, and tlley to theirs including the
expulsion or determination OF more civilized
race, whom we call the 'mound builders"
The most northern point at which any OF
my informants have seen their work is near
Oxford House, On Boat river, in latitude
about So degs and about 600 miles northeast
of this city. Thence southwark only occa-
sional signs of them are found till we reach
Rainy river, which must havelong continued
one of their defensive lines, for on it are
twenty-five high conical mounds, evidently
built to protect the passage, as they are all
located at rapids and other defensible points.
The largest is at the junction of American
and Rainy rivers, so located as to connect
both streams. That is now our boundary
from Lake of the Woods to Superior. The
antiquarians Of Canada agree that these
mounds are only burial places by accident,
and that only the bones were laid in them
after the corpS had remained long on a
raised platform, according to the present
custom of the Indians; and this theory is
strengthened by the fact that abundant evi
| dences of cooking and permanent camp life
are found in the same mound with human
bones
The family and tribal relationships Of thu
Canada Indians are even more complicated
than Of those In our territory, especially a
concerns the totem; for no matter how re
mote the kindred tribe may be, those of tn
same totem in both tribes are considered a
one family. Thus Cree man whose totem i
the bear may not marry woman of tn
same totem in the most remote and long de
parted band. Sheis his sister. They some
times do marry, but it is considered incest.
1t is scarcely necessary to add that botl
the Hudson Bay company and the govern
ment sternly forbid the introduction
of whisky, and that the usua
number of daring dealers retail
aon the sly" the vilest fire water that evel
carried hell down the savage throat and i'm
planted the spirit of murder in his heart
| And it is one of the most curious things IL
nature that the French half breeds, OF Metis
who readily take on a French polish and arr
the most gentlemanly of frontiersmen, wheI
sober, straightway turn to wild Indians whel
| drunk Ten ounces of whisky will drown th,
Frenchman in Nett and turn loose the wilC
Ojibbeway who has been all these years LYNN
concealed in his system. Iwould not venture
to say that the same amount Of the same kin,
of whisky would resurrect the Anglo Saxo
pirate in New York "bruiser," for the intel
val of time has probably been too long; bu
it is curious that as simple fluid as whisk
should produce such "reversion" up herr
isn't its
The best result of the British conquest {
Canada was that it secured long peace Wit
the Indians. But the rival Northwest con
pany grew up and operated from the grea
lakes and along our border; SO the employe
of the two companies fought in the wilderness
and stirred up strife among the Indians. TIL
Hudson Bay company therefore encourage
Lord Selllirk to found colony here in 1911
IL; but the Northwest company's men stirre
up Indians and half breeds against it. an
they captured and murdered Gov. Sempl
and twenty other officials and colonists. An
as the latter company's men were chief
French, and the Hudson Bays men Englsl
there are two conflicting accounts of the
massacre to this day.